Top Banking Trends for 2026 (Accenture)

Summary

• If digital currencies continue to gain traction, up to $13 trillion in transaction value could shift to alternative payment methods by 2030, putting an estimated $13 billion in payment fees at risk.p.5
• Total stablecoin transaction volume reached $51 trillion over the 12 months ending in October 2025, with payment-related volume estimated at $10.7 trillion.p.7
• Scaled generative AI adoption across the top 200 global banks over the next three years could increase revenues by 5%, reduce operating costs by 8%, and cut loan-loss provisions by 16%.p.38
• Nearly 70% of banking IT spending currently goes toward maintaining legacy systems and meeting ongoing regulatory demands.p.44
• Financial-crime compliance alone costs global financial institutions about $200 billion every year.p.56
• A combined $200 trillion in deposits and loans under bank management faces disruption from non-bank competitors and autonomous AI management tools.p.66

Key insights

1. In the second quarter of 2025, Tether purchased $8 billion in US Treasuries, ranking as the seventh-largest net buyer among institutional holders.p.8
2. Siemens automated its treasury using programmable money and APIs, achieving a 50% reduction in bank accounts and over $20 million in annual savings.p.10
3. Accenture's Global Holiday Shoppers Survey 2025 found that 35% of consumers are willing to let AI handle the final selection and purchase on their behalf.p.11
4. OpenAI's acquisition of io Products for $6.5 billion signals a pipeline of new personal hardware devices featuring ambient, multimodal AI agents.p.21
5. CEO-sponsored, purpose-driven AI programs deliver more than 2.5x higher ROI than AI efforts lacking clear vision and leadership support.p.33
6. Over the past 15 years, the cost of banking technology has grown around four times faster than banking revenue.p.42
7. European Banking Authority supervisory data shows that EU banks lost over $17 billion in 2024 alone due to operational risk events.p.61
8. A sensitivity model shows that a 5% erosion in lending margin and 15% in deposit margin could reduce US banks' quarterly pre-tax income by 22%.p.72